{"id":96,"date":"2011-03-01T19:30:04","date_gmt":"2011-03-02T01:30:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/iseeancestors.com\/comm\/?p=96"},"modified":"2011-06-14T14:50:57","modified_gmt":"2011-06-14T20:50:57","slug":"should-i-use-source-templates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iSeeAncestors.com\/comm\/2011\/03\/01\/should-i-use-source-templates\/","title":{"rendered":"Should I use Source Templates?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Source Templates<\/strong> is a feature that some genealogy software programs now offer. When you create a citation to reference a source in your genealogy research, the source templates tool prompts you for the necessary information.\u00a0 You simply fill in the blanks, and it constructs the actual source citation.\u00a0 Citations are then complete, and in standard format.<\/p>\n

But should you use Source Templates?\u00a0 I say No!<\/strong> The reason?\u00a0 Most if not all genealogy programs have yet to get their source templates feature working properly.\u00a0 Besides minor problems with formatting and punctuation, the most serious issue is:\u00a0 You will not be able to use your source citations outside of your genealogy program.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

I use one program as my main genealogy program.\u00a0 With it, I maintain my “master” family tree by adding, editing and deleting genealogical facts and information as I discover it.\u00a0 However I’ve yet to find one program that does everything I want.\u00a0 One program will print a report another program does not have.\u00a0 One will print a graphical family tree in a much better format than another.\u00a0 Another will create a better family tree website.<\/p>\n

There are several reasons you will want to transfer your family tree data between different programs.\u00a0 Even if you do not agree now, there will probably come a time when you do.\u00a0 Unfortunately if you were to use source templates, other programs will not be able to process your source citations.<\/p>\n

When RootsMagic 4 was first released, I bought into the notion of source templates.\u00a0 I spent a lot of time converting my free-form source citations using its source template facility.\u00a0 I quickly found many of my citations were incomplete and lacking critical information.\u00a0 Source templates are a wonderful way of filling in the blanks to construct complete, standardized citations.<\/p>\n

I use my own program, GED-GEN<\/a>, to publish my family tree website.\u00a0 When I exported a GEDCOM file from earlier releases of RootsMagic 4, I discovered its output included source template information.\u00a0 This resulted in unreadable source citations on my web pages.<\/p>\n

So I modified GED-GEN<\/a> to handle the proprietary way in which RootsMagic exported source citations.\u00a0 It worked wonderfully.\u00a0 But then in subsequent releases of RootsMagic 4, some of the source template information was removed from its GEDCOM file.\u00a0 Since that time, GED-GEN<\/a> or any other program for that matter, cannot process the source citations exported in a RootsMagic GEDCOM file.<\/p>\n

Why were those template fields removed?\u00a0 If source citations were exported using its template format, then only RootsMagic, or another program that understood that format, could process and understand the citations.\u00a0 To “correct” this, later releases simply removed critical parts of the template format.\u00a0 Now, even if another program understands that proprietary format, it cannot reconstruct the source citations.\u00a0 What’s more, removing those template fields did not solve the problem.\u00a0 Source citations cannot be reconstructed in either case.<\/p>\n

What is the Problem?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It turns out RootsMagic has a fundamental flaw.\u00a0 Its source citations are based on source templates.\u00a0 It exports source templates<\/em> to a GEDCOM file rather than source citations<\/em>.\u00a0 Remember source templates should only be used as a tool to generate proper source citations.\u00a0 The source templates themselves should not be exported without the accompanied source citations.\u00a0 RootsMagic doesn’t export source citations at all.<\/p>\n

To understand the subtlety of this distinction, let’s look at this issue in more detail.\u00a0 Here I use RootsMagic 4 as an example.\u00a0 From what I read, Family Tree Maker 2011 and Legacy Family Tree 7 may have similar issues.\u00a0 See for example Genea-Musings, The Seaver Source Citation Saga Compendium<\/a> (February 16, 2011).<\/p>\n

GEDCOM Source Records<\/strong><\/p>\n

Traditionally, each source record in a GEDCOM file refers to a single source, and it has a specific title that does not change. Citations (footnotes) that refer to this source all use the same source title. Thus many<\/strong> citations can reference one<\/strong> source. For example, a newspaper is cited by title and issue date:<\/p>\n

\nDaily News<\/em>. Washington, DC., 25 January 1977.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Introducing Templates<\/strong><\/p>\n

With source templates, the source title may contain place-holders, or fields that can be replaced by different information from different source citations (footnotes). Thus many<\/strong> citations can reference many<\/strong> variations of a single source record. The source record can now stand for many different<\/em> source titles, not just one title.<\/p>\n

For example, rather than a newspaper issue date, a variable date field is specified in a source template:<\/p>\n

Daily News<\/em>. Washington, DC., [Date].<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Then, some citations (footnotes) might refer to the 25 January 1977 issue, while others might refer to the 15 March 1995 issue. These use the same source record, but result in different dates, and thus different sources:<\/p>\n

Daily News<\/em>. Washington, DC., 25 January 1977.
\nDaily News<\/em>. Washington, DC., 15 March 1995.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

A RootsMagic GEDCOM File<\/strong><\/p>\n

In earlier releases of RootsMagic 4, a source record appeared as follows in a GEDCOM file: <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\r\n0 @S3992@ SOUR\r\n1 ABBR Newspaper, Daily News, Washington, DC\r\n1 TITL [ItemID], <i>Daily News<\/i>, Washington, DC,\r\n2 CONC [Date]<\/strong><\/span>, [Details]. [Annotation].\r\n...\r\n<\/pre>\n
Notice the template fields like [ItemID], [Date], and [Details].\u00a0 A citation (i. e., footnote) that refers to the above source record might appear as follows. Here the [Date]<\/strong><\/span> field in the template above will be replaced by 25 January 1977<\/strong><\/span>, which is taken from the citation (footnote) here:<\/p>\n
\r\n...\r\n2 SOUR @S3992@\r\n3 REFN 000651\r\n3 PAGE John Doe; 25 January 1977; Page 2, Column 2\r\n3 _TMPLT\r\n4 FIELD\r\n5 NAME ItemID\r\n5 VALUE John Doe\r\n4 FIELD\r\n5 NAME Date<\/strong><\/span>\r\n5 VALUE 25 January 1977<\/strong><\/span>\r\n4 FIELD\r\n5 NAME Details\r\n5 VALUE Page 2, Column 2\r\n4 FIELD\r\n5 NAME Annotation\r\n...\r\n<\/pre>\n
However, later releases of RootsMagic 4 removed the source template fields from the title (TITL) in the source record, so that now, the source record appears as:<\/p>\n
\r\n0 @S3992@ SOUR\r\n1 ABBR Newspaper, Daily News, Washington, DC\r\n1 TITL , <I>Daily News<\/i>, Washington, DC, .\r\n...\r\n<\/pre>\n
Notice here the empty punctuation in the title (TITL).\u00a0 The [ItemID] and [Date] fields are missing, but the commas and spaces are still there.\u00a0 Now there is no way to know where to substitute the date when trying to reconstruct the source title.\u00a0 This is not a source record.\u00a0 It is the remnant of a source template<\/em>.<\/p>\n
To correct this flaw, there would have to be multiple source records, one for each source citation that references a different<\/em> source.  That is, a source record that is missing the [Date] field:<\/p>\n
\nDaily News<\/em>. Washington, DC., [Date]<\/del>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
must really be exported as two different source records.\u00a0 This is because, in our example, there are two source citations (footnotes) that reference the same source template, and this creates two different<\/em> source titles:<\/p>\n
\nDaily News<\/em>. Washington, DC., 25 January 1977.
\nDaily News<\/em>. Washington, DC., 15 March 1995.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
This requires two different<\/em> source records to be exported in the GEDCOM file.<\/p>\n
(A related problem is the inability to generate a bibliography, without   also processing all source citations (footnotes) that reference a given   source record.\u00a0 Traditionally, a genealogy program could simply read  the  list of source records in a GEDCOM file to build a list of sources  for a  bibliography.\u00a0 Since the source records are templates here, the  actual  information can only be found in the source citations  (footnotes).\u00a0 But again, there’s no way to reconstruct a proper source title because the template fields are missing.)<\/p>\n
What’s the Solution?<\/strong><\/p>\n
Problem?\u00a0 What problem?\u00a0 There is no problem if you continue to use RootsMagic, and only RootsMagic, for your genealogy research.\u00a0 The problem occurs when you want to use your family tree data in  other programs, or share it with someone who does not use RootsMagic.<\/p>\n
One could argue that RootsMagic can read its own GEDCOM file and reconstruct the source citations just fine.\u00a0 That is true, but only because it uses information it knows internally.\u00a0 It uses a template identifier to look up the format of the template in another file.\u00a0 Otherwise, without the template fields in the GEDCOM file, RootsMagic cannot reconstruct its own source citations.\u00a0 And, hopefully, the format of a template referenced by that internal identifier will never change.\u00a0 Otherwise a newer version of RootsMagic that reads an older GEDCOM file will misinterpret the older format.<\/p>\n
In one solution, RootsMagic could correct its earlier “correction” by restoring the missing template fields.\u00a0 That solves the problem for other programs, but only if those programs understand the RootsMagic source template format.\u00a0 RootsMagic would still export source templates, and not source citations.\u00a0 I doubt many other programs would make provision for the RootsMagic format.\u00a0 And, it doesn’t solve the problem for older programs that understand only the standard GEDCOM source record format.<\/p>\n
Secondly, regardless of whether RootsMagic corrects the flaw in exporting its own source templates, it still does not export source citations<\/em> in either case.\u00a0 Clearly that is more important because without properly formed source citations, your source data is useless to other programs.\u00a0 The solution here is to export multiple source records, one for each citation (footnote) that would “cause” a different title.\u00a0 As it is now, it simply exports the remnant of a single source template.<\/p>\n
A third solution, at the risk of being overly esoteric, is to restructure the source templates themselves.\u00a0 Remove any template fields from the source titles that would be populated with information from a source citation (footnote).\u00a0 This is the information that changes based on the citation (e.g., the date), and which causes the title to change.\u00a0 In RootsMagic parlance, the title would be composed only of “master” source template fields.\u00a0 Source “detail” template fields would appear in the footnote. That perhaps was the genesis of this design flaw.\u00a0 The fields in source  templates were not divided properly as to which should be in the source  record and which should be in the source citation (footnote).<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, source templates are not so easily modified.\u00a0 Existing users would have to make extensive changes to their source citations within RootsMagic.\u00a0 Where there is but a single source, it must now be rewritten into possibly multiple sources, which in the GEDCOM, would result in:<\/p>\n
\r\n0 @S3992@ SOUR\r\n1 ABBR Newspaper, Daily News, Washington, DC, 25 January 1977\r\n...\r\n<\/pre>\n
\r\n0 @S3993@ SOUR\r\n1 ABBR Newspaper, Daily News, Washington, DC, 15 March 1995\r\n...\r\n<\/pre>\n
What’s my advice?<\/strong><\/p>\n
It’s been nearly a year since this problem was reported to RootsMagic.\u00a0  There have been many releases since then, but as of version 4.1.1.0, none address this issue.\u00a0  Clearly there are not enough people yet who want to freely move their  genealogical data between programs.<\/p>\n
I chose to use RootsMagic source templates, and my data is stuck.\u00a0 I  cannot use any other program without sacrificing all the  effort I made in converting my free-form source citations to source  templates.\u00a0 I suspect you will encounter the same problem with other  genealogy programs that offer source templates.<\/p>\n
Do not use the source templates feature of your genealogy program unless you are sure you can export your family tree data and import it to other programs.\u00a0 In the meantime stick with free-form (non-template) source citations, but use a separate program or website to generate your source citations.\u00a0 Then copy and paste the result into your free-form source citation.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, your genealogy program may still not store the citation with its constituent parts, that is with separate fields for title, author and publisher.  You may lose the benefit of standardized source records when exporting a GEDCOM file.  But, your source citations will be readable.  Although an external source template program or website is not as closely integrated with your genealogy program, you will achieve a better result in the long run.\u00a0 You gotta use the right tool for the job.<\/p>\n
Here are a couple examples:<\/p>\n
BiblioExpress<\/a> (free) is a separate program you install on your computer.  It keeps a database of your sources and you can automatically generate a source citation to copy and paste into your genealogy program.<\/p>\n
EasyBib<\/a> (free) is a website where you can generate a source citation to copy and paste into your genealogy program.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Source Templates is a feature that some genealogy software programs now offer. When you create a citation to reference a source in your genealogy research, the source templates tool prompts you for the necessary information.\u00a0 You simply fill in the blanks, and it constructs the actual source citation.\u00a0 Citations are then complete, and in standard … Continue reading “Should I use Source Templates?”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":309,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,6],"tags":[40,43,44,42,41,39],"class_list":["post-96","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-evidence","category-source-citations","tag-citations","tag-ged-gen","tag-gedcom","tag-rootsmagic","tag-source-templates","tag-sources"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iSeeAncestors.com\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iSeeAncestors.com\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iSeeAncestors.com\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iSeeAncestors.com\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/309"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iSeeAncestors.com\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=96"}],"version-history":[{"count":33,"href":"https:\/\/iSeeAncestors.com\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":325,"href":"https:\/\/iSeeAncestors.com\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96\/revisions\/325"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iSeeAncestors.com\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=96"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iSeeAncestors.com\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=96"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iSeeAncestors.com\/comm\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=96"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}